Hey Mamas! It's June. How are all of your little babies? Levi is 2 weeks old today. He's sleeping pretty good at night--about 3, 3-4 hour stretches. He's been having a fussy period every night for the last 3 nights--but only for about 20-30minutes.

His cord is still attached--I hope it falls off soon. I'm always nervous it's going to get caught on something if he isn't wearing his onesie.

Instead of having "falling" dreams, I've been having dreams that I'm dropping him. Or I dream that I forgot to put him in the side-sleeper before I fell asleep and he's stuck under my blankets. I wake up with a jolt and racing heart.

Emotionally I've been doing good. I had a few weepy spells in the hospital when we were there for 4 days after he was born due to his jaundice, but I think that was mainly from sleep deprivation. Is everyone else doing okay?

I wish I could figure out how to attach pictures to this new format...he's growing so fast and gets cuter by the day!!

Bump!
well, Aspin is 3 days today, and doing great! mrsgail: she had jaundice to and they tried to keep us in overnight, but I said no, and she's clearing up, due to lots of sun exposure. I'm dealing with a bit of jealousy with both DD 1, and 2, even though 1's only 1 yr! do you have any other kids?

Eliza is 4 weeks old now. She has a 2 hour fussy period at night but as long as I get the other kids in bed before it starts its not too bad. And her's is 9-11 pm so its late enough that they need to be in bed by then anyway.

Today, though, she has only slept about 5-10 minutes at a time all day aside from a 30 minute sleep with DH on the couch. I'm pooped! And hungry! She is not any extra hungry either she just wants up with mommy. I think she knew I wanted to do a good clean of the house and catch up on laundry. : )

At night Eliza has spread her sleep out from religiously every 1-2 hours to every 3 hours. I go to bed at 10:00 or 11:00 so I only end up feeding her twice before I am up in the a.m. Day time eating has spread out to every 2-3 hours which is a great improvement over the every 30 minutes - hour feeds she was doing before.

Jealousy with the other 2 kids is going ok. Neither seems jealous of the baby but my 3.5 y.o. has been getting rough, competitive, and acting out against my 13 m.o. but I haven't figured out if its just her age or the fact that the 13 m.o. is not "the baby" anymore. Its kind of like, 'hey, were wrestling and having fun...oops I maybe bit her finger and now she is crying.'

Lydia is 5 weeks today and doing well. She has acid reflux and is taking a tiny dose of Zantac which seems to help a lot. At times she spits up hugely; I wish she wouldn't because it is disgusting and wasting my milk, but I know she will outgrow it. She was not back to her birthweight by 2 weeks but did get there by 3 weeks and has definitely grown since. She can still get into her coming-home outfit, but it is tight now.

Weather has been beautiful here, so we have been out for at least one walk every day and to a bunch of events. I try not to worry about exposure to some dread disease. It's fun showing her off to people. It seems like everywhere we go, strangers approach us for conversation that begins with basically, "I see you have a baby. I also know a baby." I swear, one of these people said, "My cousin's neighbor has a nephew who's 10 months." Weird, but it is nice that everyone is interested in my baby.

Nursing is going better. Lydia is able to nurse lying down sometimes, so I don't always have to get up in the night. She is not chewing on me as much as she was. She does sometimes force her arms in between us, preventing her from latching or pulling herself loose. We went to LLL and got some advice. It was fun seeing other moms and babies and being in a real-life mom discussion, too.

Lydia often sleeps 3 hours at a time at night and sometimes separates them with just nursing and going back to sleep. Other nights she is up for a while around 3-5am. About one night in 4 she is very difficult to get to sleep at the beginning of the night--which I don't even attempt until 10:00 unless she happens to be sleeping and I am ready to conk out with her. Overall she is sleeping better than her brother, who typically nursed every hour around the clock, skipping a few of the hours each day but at unpredictable times!

It's not like I have free hands to selectively shop and cook a favorable diet. She doesnt like my Didy wraps because she wants full body contact; we have an ergo but even in our incredibly mild climate, the infant insert is too warming. I am going to target to look at the infantino sash mei tai because it is supposed to be easy on and off. hope she doesnt scream through it.

She's spitting up less, at least. I burp her religiously, day & night - long and in different positions - and feed her mostly in semi-upright to upright positions. I miss side-lying feeding at night, but figure making breast milk is harder than delivering it At least at night she'll go 1-3 hours between feeds!

Another complication is that she hates the fabric on my nursing dresses. The only one she likes is organic hemp/cotton, otherwise she needs the full boob exposed. Hippie baby.

I am applying for new insurance for her (we are switching as well, since birth is a qualifying event), but the app is due by the 15th and we wont get the birth certificate until the 18th.

I am going to target to look at the infantino sash mei tai because it is supposed to be easy on and off.

I have one and like it, but I would not call it easy on or off: You have to set down the baby (or balance her on you lap with no hands) for the first part of getting it on, and then the shoulder straps are super long and drag on the ground and get caught on the furniture and have to be crossed behind your back while you are holding up the baby. Once it's on, though, it is pretty comfortable for me, and baby loves it. I am looking forward to transitioning to the ring sling, though.

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Levi is three weeks today He's sleeping 2-3 hours at a time during the night. During the day he takes two long naps and a bunch of short ones. He's still nursing really well and is outgrowing some of his pajamas

He has a diaper rash that I can't get rid of. He's using way more cloth diapers and wipes than I expected, and have been using normal wipes when I run out of my flannel ones each day. I'm wondering if this is contributing to the rash. I change him constantly--22 times yesterday. He wets constantly and has like 8 huge poops a day. I've tried some of the "normal" diaper creams like A&D and Desitin, also coconut oil, egg whites and corn starch. Nothing is clearing it up. I've been trying to let him go without a diaper to help it air out--but that's kinda hard. He peed 3x when I had his diaper off for less than a half hour the other day. And then peed 2x and pooped when I had it off for just a few minutes today... His rash isn't terrible--I've definitely seen worse when I worked in daycare. His skin isn't broken or anything...but I kinda feel like a bad mom that he has a rash at all. Any tips from more experienced moms? I use a minimal amount of detergent when I wash diapers and I give them an extra rinse. I'm cutting more flannel squares for wipes tonight so I'll be eliminating the "real" wipes completely.

Could it be something I'm eating? I did eat almost a whole pineapple the other day...then I wondered if that contributed to it

I'm reading mixed opinions on whether babies get more rashes with cloth of disposable. What do you think? I'm definitely willing to use disposables for a few days if it will help clear things up.
What works to get rid of your baby's diaper rash?

I figured out how to add pictures. You have to scroll way down on the screen...there's a green rectangle way down there that says "Manage Attachments" Click on that. I want to see pictures of your babies too! Here are a few more of Levi.

There is a lot of sash! It would be kind of cool if the sashes had tension and were retractable. I didn't quite get mine tied tight enough and ended up keeping my hands on baby when we went for a walk. It was a lot easier for me to use at this stage than the ergo w/ insert (too hot and the stuffing-in part is weird!) or the k'tan (baby got lost) or the woven wraps (too much work for a newborn who needs constant attending-to). Also she likes being upright for full frontal contact. Have you nursed in yours? Supposedly they allow for that?
I've heard the same of some slings also, so that seems like a positive.

Between the diet and the clothes I gotta admit, the breastfeeding thing is lovely, but is really confusing.

I've never really figured out the nursing in a carrier thing, though I've tried with all my babies in multiple different carriers. I think some people's anatomies are more compatible with it than others.

I'm really liking the Beco Gemini - it works from 7lbs without an insert, and I can put it on by myself without too much trouble. Runa is still too small for my mei tai, but we've been using the Beco for a month or so. The only thing I really don't like is that it doesn't have a pocket - I'm debating between trying to add one on, or just sticking it out until she's big enough for an Ergo.

As far as diaper rash goes, some babies do better with cloth, and others with disposables. Changing laundry detergents might help. Diet could be related. We recently switched to cloth at home because Runa was pooping super frequently again (and she finally got big enough for them not to be too ridiculous), and cutting out eggs seemed to help (I admit that I get a little OCD about diet and go cutting things out of my diet right and left for symptoms that a pediatrician would say were normal, but I do think it's worth a try).

If you're not already using a cloth diaper with a fleece liner, you could try that and see if it helps - you can just get fleece at a fabric store and cut it up, rather than buying anything special. OTOH, if you are using something with a liner (like a pocket diaper), some babies react to the synthetics, and switching to just cotton might help.

I go back to work Monday - just one shift a week until we see how it goes. I'm both looking forward to it, and pissed that I work someplace so backwards (a healthcare corporation, even!) that they don't offer paid maternity leave, just the mandatory FMLA.

Diaper rash with a red ring around the anus indicates that it's something baby/mom ate. Otherwise it is more likely caused by diaper moisture. Lydia had some general redness with one raw spot that we cleared up using coconut oil after the zinc oxide cream did not help enough and we tried two days of disposables which gave us multiple blowouts. Inferior fake diapers!!

We got our Maya Wrap and used it today to march in a parade with our church. It is more comfortable for me than the sash carrier, and Lydia seems happy enough in it. I still need to watch the DVD to refresh my memory and learn about improvements to the sling--it is a little different from the one I had for my son. I am feeling very adept though after running across a street and boarding a bus while nursing! (Our bus home from downtown was detoured and turned out to arrive at a different corner of the intersection than where we were waiting.)

Nursing in a carrier only works for me if I loosen it significantly so that I have to hold up the baby with my arm (or lap--better to sit down) so that basically I am using the carrier for concealment and to avoid having to wriggle out of it.

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He has a diaper rash that I can't get rid of. He's using way more cloth diapers and wipes than I expected, and have been using normal wipes when I run out of my flannel ones each day. I'm wondering if this is contributing to the rash. I change him constantly--22 times yesterday.

Are you wiping him with every pee? I found that lots of wiping seemed hard on my babies' skin. I only wash/wipe with poops now. I also use the sink and do a rinse with warm water, and pat dry, rather than try to wipe off all the poop bits if it's a messy one.

Have you thought about ECing? I am able to get my little guy to pee and poop in the sink and then I am usually pretty safe to leave him diaper less for a while.

I find nursing in the carrier is a bit tricky when they are really tiny... I am using a moby right now and find that if I put him in a cradle position sort of low down it works, and then when he's done I pull him out and put him back in a bit more upright for sleeping.

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MrsGail, are you using any solution on your cloth wipes? We use just water. For a wet diaper I moistn one corner of the wipe, use it, and then use the opposite corner to blot dry so I am not leaving baby damp in the new diaper. You could do this with two separate wipes if you have enough.

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I am feeling very adept though after running across a street and boarding a bus while nursing!

Amazing. That's a fabulous image. My little one sometimes squirms off if I am doing so much as reading webpages on my mobile device!

My state declared a whooping cough epidemic. I am trying not to look with dread suspicion on visitors but definitely trying not to take the baby along on errands while I can afford to do so.

We visited the ped/hospital today for the first time since baby's birth, and the ped suggested that if I wanted to do spaced and selective vaccinations (We'd probably get dtap, polio, rotavirus), baby should get the dtap at 6 weeks instead of 8 to allow for more time between shots Absent the epidemic, I'd prefer to delay all shots until an immune system has had some time to develop.

Any thoughts on building immunity naturally in the meantime? I'm taking probiotic supplements, not sure if those get through the milk, but hesitant to offer probiotics directly to baby to speed up gut colonization, ugh it's all confusing, in the end.

I'm also thinking about vaccinations. I was planning to delay everything and then be somewhat selective, but am also concerned about whooping cough. Does anyone know if the pertussis vaccine is ever given by itself? Does it have to be given as the Dtap? I'm not worried about him getting tetanus or diphtheria now. I'm not someone who is convinced autism comes from vaccines, but hey--nobody knows where it comes from...so why not err on the side of caution. Also, I just don't want my tiny baby pumped full of who-knows-what when his liver/kidneys aren't at their highest level of functioning yet...it took him 4 weeks to get the bilirubin out of his system when he was so jaundiced...

Exercise...haha. I went for 2 short walks when Levi was about a week old. Haven't done anything since...unless a couple Kegels count I'm thinking about walking to the library later today I'm thrilled to be losing a pound or pound and a half a week without exercising or being too careful about what I eat. Nursing is the most awesome "exercise" I've ever done!! 21 more pounds to go...hoping they come off even faster if I start walking every day again like I used to.

I got a work-from-home teaching job and I'm so so excited!! I applied back in April, and hadn't heard anything, so I thought it wasn't going to happen. They called me to set up an interview on Tuesday, interviewed on Wednesday and got offered the position on Thursday!! It's a pay cut from what I'm making in the public schools now, but not nearly as big of a cut as I was expecting...and I get to stay home with my baby boy!!! Levi slept his longest stretch yet last night--5 1/2 hours!! I couldn't fall back to sleep after that...thinking about my new job. But he went back to sleep for 3 1/2 more hours after being changed and nursed.

He was 10lb3oz and 22.5" at his 1 month well-baby on Wednesday. He gained 6oz and a half inch in 5 days. I took him to the doc last week too for thrush--which was also the source of the diaper rash I couldn't get rid of last week.

I live in a very walkable neighborhood and normally walk on many of my errands, as well as walking my son to school--so I had to rein myself in during the first weeks, and now I am walking a lot. Other exercises like crunches have been once a week or less, though, and I just started with my exercise ball--last timeit took me literally years to discover that that was the secret to healing my abs back together!

Lydia has been doing exercises of her own, lying on her back on her changing mat on the floor and waving arms and legs, and sometimes has managed to move as much as 18 inches or rotate as much as 90 degrees. I don't remember her brother doing this sort of thing until about 3 months!

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It takes time. There's a saying "Nine months on, nine months off". I was reading through my old journal the other day, and found an entry where I wrote that I tend to lose a bunch between 6 and 9 months, which is what I needed to hear, because I've been a little discouraged myself - I've lost quite a bit, but have been plateaued there for a good while now, even gaining and then re-losing a few pounds.

I do need to exercise more. I just live in the middle of nowhere, and there's really no destination to walk to around here.

Ive been eating everything in sight do to my very hungry baby also. She is 7 weeks and has gained 1 lb per week since we left the hospital except for week 5. Now she is 13 lbs! We struggled majorly this past week with the 6 week growth spurt. Wednesday she nursed every hour during the day, every half hour in the evening, then nursed for 2.5 hours straight at bedtime, then was up 6 times that night!! The rest of the week she pretty much gave up daytime sleep and took 2 hours of nursing to get to sleep. Today she is finally back to taking her 3 hr afternoon nap and a more reasonable feeding routine. The bad news is I am pretty sure she has an issue with dairy because she has a diaper rash that wont go away and desitin actually makes her skin peel : ( It looks kind of like a yeast infection but then she has some marks that look like she has been burned with a cigarette on her butt and she has also had an off and on (but always a little there) rash on her face, neck, and back.

I'm excited to only have 6 lbs. to lose but I done think they will be going anywhere until after nursing. I'm very 'rounded' and not toned at all. Ive been finding at max I only can get 15 minutes to decide a few times a week.

I'm about 12 pounds over my pre-preggers weight, and given the restrictions on dairy and favorite vegetables, it seems doubtful I would get back to it ever while nursing. Not having those foods makes me crave random macronutrients which honestly doesn't make sense to me - wouldn't my normal vegetable-rich, grain-low diet be a better set of building blocks for a new babe?

My chiro said for me not to do any strength-training type exercise until week 8 postpartum, to conserve energy and rebuild. I was bummed, but it makes sense. When you sleep as little and as badly as moms of newborns do, your cortisol levels are probably high and that alone would make it hard to lose weight around the midsection.

B, that is a lot of weight gain! My little one isn't gaining that fast any more - I think, though I've cut out so much, the gas really frustrates her. The ped scared me when we visited her - she said, "Oh, your baby isn't colicky. Colic doesn't start til 3 months. This is just fussiness." Does that mean the restricted diet has to last as long as I nurse?

carnelionlight--I always heard that colic usually starts around 2wks and is pretty much over by 2-3 months.

awesome weight gains for your little girl BaileyB. You must get a little thrill seeing her grow so well. I feel quite proud of Levi's weight gains and he isn't growing a pound a week like your little one.

I lost another pound this week and now I'm "only" 20 over my pre-pregnancy weight. I felt like celebrating and was so happy all day--when I lose another pound, it will be less than 20.

Does anyone else feel like your milk runs low in the evening time? Levi takes longer naps in the morning and afternoon and then nurses a lot more frequently in the evening. He ends up getting upset and continually pulling off of my breasts. When I squeeze my breasts, milk still comes out, but I don't think there's as much as he would like or else it just doesn't come as fast. He sucks 4-8 times between swallows. During the night and in the morning/afternoon he swallows after each suck.

B, that is a lot of weight gain! My little one isn't gaining that fast any more - I think, though I've cut out so much, the gas really frustrates her. The ped scared me when we visited her - she said, "Oh, your baby isn't colicky. Colic doesn't start til 3 months. This is just fussiness." Does that mean the restricted diet has to last as long as I nurse?

My experience is that I can relax on the diet restrictions at about 6 months - when they're ready for solids, basically. At that point, their gut is sealed (at least compared to how it is when they're younger) and the little bits of whatever in breastmilk are less likely to be a problem.

I still avoided large amounts of the problem foods, but a little bit on occasion wasn't a problem.

Mrs Gail- lower milk supply is common in the evening. Prolactin levels are lowest at that time. Frequent night nursing can help build tank baby up (we cosleep for this purpose- not sure if you are, but that can help to ensure a good supply). Kellymom.com has some good info.

Bailey, did you try coconut oil on the diaper rash? It worked wonders for us! It also was great on my stiches while they were healing and the skin felt really tight. (I guess it would be dangerous if baby has a nut allergy, though--you wouldn't know yet, and this would be a scary way to find out.)

CarnelianLight, I have heard and read (Dr. Sears) the same thing as MrsGail about colic typically being OVER around 3 months.

I learned last night that a nursing pad makes a good coaster for your cold drink.

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6 months ocelotmom. I can go a summer without ice cream but not without kale!

Am going to try adding things back in, & hope baby girl's gas fussiness ends sooner rather than later - funny how one random comment from a ped can send you into a spiral of thought and activity.

We had our 6 week checkup with the midwife today and although I am healing all right from the pregnancy & delivery, I have diastasis recti. She demonstrated one exercise - basically a slow mini-crunch while you push the two plates of ab muscles together with your hands - but the pilates classes she suggested look kinda pricey. Anyone else get this, or recommend any good exercises?